Texas tourism touts Western swing, longhorns, Panhandle

AUSTIN - With tourists pumping about $29 billion into the state economy, Texas is launching a pun-filled advertising campaign to tell out-of-staters that Texas is "more than you think."

TV commercials and magazine ads will use visual puns to tout everything from Western swing (golf) to the Panhandle (a chef sauteing) to longhorns (a jazz saxophone).

And as for its legendary size, well, one ad notes that the biggest Texas ranch is larger than the whole state of Rhode Island, while the whole state of Texas covers 266,807 square miles, and: "That's bigger than France, pardner."

The $9 million ad barrage debuts this week, adding to the successful "Texas, it's like a whole other country" campaign, said Tracy McDaniel, deputy executive director for tourism with the state Department of Economic Development.

TV commercials will run on 22 national cable television networks. Printed advertisements will go in 60 publications. Internationally, the campaign will appear in Canada, Latin America, Mexico, the United Kingdom and Germany.

A separate series of public service announcements will be given to Texas TV stations, urging residents to "see Texas first."

"Our goal is to promote Texas as a premier destination," said Marion Szurek, tourism representative for the Economic Development agency's governing board. "This massive advertising campaign is one of the tools."

The commercials offer a series of puns that juxtapose a traditional word image of Texas with a more unconventional site.

Among those: "Wagon train" shows a line of roller coaster cars; "Western Swing" shows a golfer; "Stage Coach" shows an orchestra conductor; "Country Music" has a German Polka band.

The magazines ads continue the theme: "Big Spread" pairs photos of a sprawling ranch with a hammock on a deserted beach; "Yeeehaaw" pairs a rodeo rider with screaming kids on a roller coaster; "Longhorns" pairs a steer with a saxophonist.

Those ads also provide travelers with some lesser-known facts: There are 5,000 species of wildflowers in Texas; 72 Texas musicians have won Grammys; one ranch's fences stretch for 1,431 miles; the state has 13 major theme and amusement parks; there are more than 800 bed and breakfasts in Texas, along with 94 guest ranches.

Szurek, director of the San Angelo Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the tourism push is for more than just bragging rights.

Spending $29.3 billion a year in Texas, tourists help provide 487,000 jobs, a $9.7 billion payroll, $1.1 billion in state taxes and $871 million in local taxes, the state estimates.

"Every single Texan saves $805 a year in taxes they would have to pay because tourism underwrites that exact amount," she said.